HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus)

HIV is a disease/virus that affects the whole of your body. People may not realise that their immune system acts as a defence for all sorts of infections getting into the body leaving the body to work harder to fight such infections. If suffering from HIV it then leaves the body open to other infections or illnesses such as Cancer. The most common way of contracting HIV is through unprotected sex. It is also possible to suffer from such a disease if injected through needles. At this moment in time there is no cure for the infection, however for those who have contracted such an infection they can take treatment which will control the infection so that they can live some sort of normal life for as long as possible. There are even some people within the UK who suffer from the infection without even knowing about it which may be one reason why there is a large amount of people who suffer. If more people knew about the infection then they could limit the number of people getting infected and save numerous lives.

There are various clinics which have been set up to help those suffering, not only with the treatment required but also psychologically as it would be a hard time for anyone not only at diagnosis but also for the rest of their life as it is something that you will be constantly reminded by. Once the body has been infected and got to a certain level where the body cannot fight infections anymore is then classed as AIDS.

Once the symptoms occur some people may mistake them for flu like symptoms and again leaves the infection being open to be contracted by others, symptoms could be anything from a temperature to headaches, but also muscle pain or joint pain, sore throat, excessive sweating at night. As these are common symptoms of the flu then people may not react to them and consult their doctor. The main concern is then the risk of becoming ill with another disease which is why it is important to take the anti-HIV medication as it is less likely those on the medication then to suffer a further illness. It is a consideration for anyone to have a test for HIV to be on the safe side, all you would need to have is a blood test and wait for the results to arrive. To be certain of the results in can take up to three months to be completely accurate as it takes a while for the disease to develop. There are various places you can be tested for such a disease as it does not necessarily have to be done at your local GP but also at sexual health clinics. If diagnosed then you would have to attend various appointments to keep an eye on your immune level and also any symptoms you may be experiencing, however such medication should hopefully reduce the level of viruses in the body.